Most writers on Substack are terrible at headlines. We try to be poetic or “make people curious” by being vague; employ clickbaity, ChatGPT-generated ick that doesn’t work here; or follow bad advice on the internet and sound like we’re selling vacuums.

In this workshop, you’ll learn

  • What makes a great 

    • headline (on your site and in the app), 

    • heading (within posts), and 

    • subject line (in email);

  • How to write them to make people click, subscribe, pay to subscribe, and become loyal readers;

  • Why clickbait is so dead and what to do instead;

  • Why you shouldn’t use Chat GPT;

  • How to train ChatGPT to write headlines that aren’t awful—if you insist on using it;

  • Correct punctuation; and

  • Where to get feedback on your headlines. 

What I teach you comes from journalists and editors at NPR, The New York Times, and the BBC.

You won’t just passively take in this information; you’re going to have time to practice on past posts and do it on upcoming posts.


What qualifies me to teach this workshop?

(You should ask this of everyone you work with!)

The guidance I give you is based directly on the advice Substack gave me. No marketing tricks. No gimmicks. 

I also share with you my experience as 

  • the creator of two bestselling, featured Substack publications (Writers at Work with Sarah Fay and Cured: The Memoir); 
  • an author at HarperCollins; 
  • a member of Substack’s Product Lab; 
  • a former advisory editor at The Paris Review; and 
  • a creative writing professor at Northwestern University.


No one else has the relationship with Substack that I do and specializes in the unique nature of the platform, how it can be used to earn an income, and how it complements traditional publishing and all aspects of a writer’s career.

For more, visit www.sarahfay.org and follow me on Instagram @sarahfayauthor (though IG is mostly my cats, who get tens of thousands of views).